


'cause it was sink or swim and I went down, down, down

by quakeriders



Series: to the stars who listen // a collection of feysand au's [1]
Category: A Court of Thorns and Roses Series - Sarah J. Maas
Genre: F/M, Happy Ending, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Domestic Violence, Not Tamlin Friendly, POV Feyre Archeron, POV Rhysand (ACoTaR), Tamlin The Tool
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-04
Updated: 2019-03-04
Packaged: 2019-11-09 06:16:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17996501
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quakeriders/pseuds/quakeriders
Summary: Inspired by these prompts on tumblr:The walls are paper thin and I can always hear you having sex and honestly idk if i’m more jealous because i’m not getting any or irritated because it’s keeping me up at night?andThe walls are paper thin and you just heard the brutal break up of me and my ex, and now you’re trying to comfort me through the walls and it’s kinda awkward but it’s also helping so?





	'cause it was sink or swim and I went down, down, down

**Author's Note:**

> title from: broods - bridges  
> come say hi on tumblr: @quakeriders
> 
> -
> 
> I honestly didn't know where this fic was going but it's a thing now, so here you go.

The first time it happened, Rhys was lying in bed, reading a book. At first he only heard the muffled sounds of rushed footsteps, then a thump as if something hit the wall in the adjacent apartment and laughter. Then she started to moan. The sound immediately drew his attention and as the wall behind him began to literally shake against his headboard, he heard her cry out in pleasure.

Rhys didn’t really know what to do? Was he supposed to listen? To go over there and ask them politely to keep the noise down? Or just leave his bed and do god knows what at 2am?

When her sounds became clearer, an image of his neighbour pressed against the fall flashed in his mind and he jumped out of bed. He had only talked to her a couple of times, when they were in the elevator together. About the mailmen, the weather or the canvas, she was hauling up or down that particular day. She was an artist, that much he knew. And she was beautiful.

He dressed quickly, trying not to listen as she begged her partner to do it harder, faster and tell him that she wanted him right there. God, he couldn’t stand it. So he hurried out of his apartment and was outside in the chilly wind before the roaring in his head had subsided.

Rhys slid his hands into his pockets and went for a long, long walk.

—

The next time it happened was a week later. This time he wasn’t alone though. Cassian and Azriel, his best friends, had turned up with three bottles of whiskey and a tale Cassian’s utter failure to score a date for Azriel.

They were well into their second bottle when Rhys heard the telltale signs of his neighbour getting it on with whomever was with her.

Cassian’s eyebrows rose in surprise and what must have been delight. "You have great neighbour’s, Rhys." He chuckled.

Since they were in his living room, the sounds were fainter from here but still clear enough to make out a deep voice asking his neighbour what she wanted him to do with her. Her reply was so filthy that heat shot through Rhys as they all heard it.

Cassian just blew out a breath and Azriel looked really uncomfortable. "Maybe we should turn on some music." He just said and reached for the remote.

Before he did, they heard a yelp and then a moan so guttural that, again a picture of his neighbour naked and panting flashed before his eyes. Rhys shook his head and was thankful when the music drowned out the sounds.

—

The third time it happened, Rhys could help but groan as he was woken up at 4am. Whatever kind of bootycall this was, Rhys was slowly loosing his temper. He understood that sometimes during sex things could get loud, but it was starting to feel like his neighbour and her boyfriend were testing his nerves. Gritting his teeth, he put on his headphones and ignored the desire that swept over him.

—

Rhys was late for a meeting with Cassian. He hadn’t slept well last night, thanks to his neighbour’s very active and very loud sex life. A text from Cassian, told him that he was down in the lobby waiting for him.

Getting dressed as fast as he could, Rhys left his apartment before Cassian became impatient and marched up here.

—

Cassian was waiting in the lobby. Leaning casually against a wall playing with his phone, when he heard someone curse loudly. The words were foul and his smirk only widened when he saw the girl, who had spoken them. She was beautiful, with light brown hair tied into a bun that was messily held together with what seemed to be a brush. Her jeans were ripped at the knees and splattered with paint. And she trying to haul a canvas through the elevator door that was twice her size.

Ever the gentlemen, Cassian approached her. "Can I help you, sweetheart?" He asked and when she looked up at him, she narrowed her blue-grey eyes at him.

"I’m not your sweetheart." She scowled at him and he chuckled. "My mistake." He watched as the elevator door tried to shut itself and when a panicked look crossed her face, he stretched out his arm.

Almost reluctantly, she said, "Thanks. I would very much appreciate your help, even though you seem to be a prick."

He chuckled again and picked up the canvas with ease. As he did so, he realised that she had a bag slung over her shoulder, packed so tightly that it didn’t close fully. A few brushes poked out of it, they were stained with different colours.

When he got the canvas through the door, he placed it down and said casually, "I should probably help you get it out on your floor."

She nodded again and looked almost relieved. "Thanks again, prick."

"It’s Cassian. But you’re right, my friends usually call me that, too."

At that she laughed. "I’m Feyre. I don’t think I have seen you around here before? Have you moved in recently?"

He shook his head. "No, my friend lives here. Although I wouldn’t mind this place too much. My friend’s neighbour has crazy wild sex and the walls seem to be very thin." He winked at that and she chuckled, shaking her head.

"Really? I never had problems with thin walls before." She mused, looking thoughtful.

The elevator stopped and the doors opened. Cassian lifted the canvas and hauled it into the hallway. He hadn’t checked which floor they went to and when Feyre reached to take the canvas from him, he just held tighter. "I feel obliged to carry it to your front door."

She seemed reluctant and Cassian realised how creepy he must have sounded. "I promise I’ll leave before you unlock your door, I’m just trying to be helpful."

Feyre relaxed a little at that and just warned him, "I know self defence."

He chuckled and when she brushed passed him to walk down the hallway, Cassian followed. He realised too late that the door they stopped at was the one right next to Rhys.

And had he thought he could’ve gotten away with it, he hadn’t counted on Rhys rushing out of his doorway at the exact same moment Feyre stopped at hers.

"Cassian, what are you doing up here?" Rhys asked, taking in the scene before him.

Feyre dropped her keys and slowly turned to face Cassian. She was beet red and her blue-grey eyes wide. "That’s your friend?"

Cassian tried, tried and failed to hide the wobbling of his lips as he nodded. "Hey, Rhys."

She looked positively mortified as she bent down to pick up her keys. His eyes met Rhys’ and his friend shot him a questioning look.

"Um, thanks for helping me with that." Feyre said suddenly, her face impossibly redder than before. She looked like she might die of embarrassment and if Cassian was honest, he felt a little sorry for her. But then again, there wasn’t anything to be sorry about.

She took the canvas off his hands and clumsily unlocked her door. "So, um, have a nice day." She spluttered and almost threw herself into her apartment and flung her door shut.

"What did you do?" Rhys asked, a glint in his eyes. Cassian shrugged, turning around and walking back to the elevator. Rhys caught up with him effortlessly. Only when Cassian stopped before the elevator did he face Rhys, a broad smirk on his face. "I might have told her about your neighbour and her extremely wild and loud sex life."

Rhys closed his eyes for a second. And Cassian could feel a lecture coming. When Rhys opened his eyes, Cassian lifted his hands in placation. "Look, man, I didn’t know she was your neighbour. I was just trying to make a joke."

"Great." Rhys said with a sigh and Cassian wondered, if perhaps his friend had a little crush on his neighbour. He didn’t press the subject, knowing when to stand his ground and when to leave things be.

—

The next couple of days, whenever Rhys spotted Feyre in their building, she blushed furiously and fled as quickly as possible. Once when they were in the elevator together, she even went as far as pulling out her phone and acting like she was having a phone call. He didn’t remind her that there was no cell service in the elevator.

But almost two weeks later, Rhys was getting his mail, when he saw her pacing up and down the lobby. She was playing with her phone impatiently and when a car parked before the building, she went stock still. Rhys not wanting to pry but not able to stop himself, slowly opened one of his envelopes and tried his very best to blend into the walls.  
A blonde guy entered the lobby. His face was tight and he barely managed a smile as Feyre went over to him and hugged him. She placed a kiss on the corner of his mouth, stating on her toes to reach it. Then she let go of him and said something, making to walk towards the door. Her boyfriend grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back to him. She went willingly, but shook her head at him.

Her boyfriend’s face tightened further and he scowled at her. She seemed to deflate at that and just shrugged. Then he kissed her boldly and she melted into his touch. Rhys looked down at his letter, not wanting to further creep on them.

"We’ll go out another time, babe." He heard her boyfriend say and Feyre’s sigh was audible from across the lobby. He looked up at that and their eyes met. Caught in his spying, Rhys didn’t know what to do but simply nod in greeting. She blushed again and when her boyfriend caught them sharing a glance, he asked, "Who’s that?"

"A neighbour, Tam. What else could he be?" She replied sarcastically and the arm he had wrapped around her waist tightened. He didn’t acknowledge Rhys further and when they disappeared into the elevator, Rhys debated whether he should just leave and spare himself from listening to them all night or do what he had planning for the last few days.

Sighing, he locked his mailbox and headed for the elevator. He should really invest in some noise cancelling headphones. But an hour passed, then two and he didn’t hear anything from the other side of the walls.

—

Feyre was mortified. Absolutely, terribly mortified. She had been cancelling her plans to see Tamlin for the last couple of days but tonight, he had finally snapped and told her that he was coming over. She couldn’t very well tell him why she didn’t want him to. And Tamlin did like for her to stay over, because his roommate Lucien rarely spent the night somewhere else.

She had asked Tamlin to go on a proper date outside. To go to a movie, have dinner or both. But Tamlin had said they’d talk about it when he came over. And down in the lobby he had said that he wanted nothing more than spending a quiet night in with the girl of his dreams. She couldn’t refuse him after that.

But she had insisted on cooking him dinner. And ply him with wine. And all the while, she tried to come up with an excuse not to have sex tonight. It wasn’t about her not wanting to - because she did. Looking at Tamlin all she could think about was getting his mouth on her, but she didn’t want to have sex with him if her neighbour - her incredibly kind and hot neighbour - would be listening. His friend had called him Rhys and Feyre thought that the name fit him somehow. It hadn’t helped to lessen the desire she had felt to paint him ever since she had laid eyes on him. Sometimes, when she was mindlessly sketching, she looked down to see that she had drawn him. Those pages she had hidden so that no one but her would ever see them. It was creepy and she didn’t think neither Rhys, nor Tamlin would appreciate her drawings of her neighbour.

When Tamlin drained the last of his wine, he placed the glass on the coffee table before him and reached over to pull Feyre closer. She let him twist her around and pull her into this lap. Looking down at him, Feyre cupped his face but Tamlin leaned in to kiss her neck.

Her head dropped back, allowing him better access. But when his hands drifted to her belt, she stopped him. "Tam, I’m not feeling like sex tonight." She told him in what she hoped was a soft but still serious voice.

He raised one eyebrow at her. "Why?" The single word was more like a growl and Feyre tried not to flinch away. "I have to get up early tomorrow and I already have an headache from the wine."

She wasn’t lying. Drinking wine always left her with a pounding headache. "Can we just sleep?"

Tamlin gently pushed her back onto the couch and got up. "Why did you call me over, if you don’t want to have sex?" He asked, his voice rising.

—

Rhys sat up suddenly as he heard the unmistakeable sound of a glass shattering. A shriek of fear and suddenly someone was shouting. He couldn’t make out the words, but the fury in them had him up and heading towards the door before he fully understood what was happening.

He was already in front of her door, when he heard a small sob between the yells. The yelling stopped, when he pounded on the door. His blood was boiling.

The door was yanked open and the blonde guy from the lobby was standing there. His green eyes were filled with rage. "What the hell do you want?" He sniped and Rhys had enough strength in him not to punch him right then and there. Instead he slid his hands into his pockets and tried to look like he was merely an annoyed neighbour. "It’s late and I don’t particularly care for you howling like an animal." He said.

"Who is it, Tam?" Came a small voice from inside. He could see her then. Feyre, one arm wrapped around herself, while the other hastily wiped away the tears from her face.

"Your overly concerned neighbour." Her boyfriend, Tamlin, replied through gritted teeth. Then he turned to face Feyre and at his look, she went stock still like an animal caught in the headlights. Her eyes flicked up to his and back to Tamlin.

"I didn’t-" She said.

His fingers twitched. He wanted to punch the asshole before him so badly it hurt.

Instead, he looked at Feyre. "Are you okay?, he asked.

She nodded. "I’m fine. Sorry for disturbing you. We’ll keep the noise down." She hurried forward an arm curling around Tamlin’s. She tried to pull him back but Tamlin didn’t move. "Don’t apologise to him. It’s none of his business what we do inside your apartment."

"It’s my business, when a drunken asshole throws a glass around while yelling at his girlfriend." Rhys said and Feyre flinched at his words.

—

She couldn’t believe this was happening. She looked from Tamlin’s furious face to her neighbour’s cold stare. She had to stop this, had to make him leave.

Tamlin turned his icy green stare towards her. "So, is he the reason you didn’t want to see me? Didn’t want me to fuck you? You’ve been fucking him instead?" He jerked his head at her neighbour and rage filled Feyre.

"No!", she ground out and let go of his arm. "Just because I don’t want to have sex, doesn’t mean that I’m cheating on you."

Rhys chuckled. It wasn’t an amused chuckle. It was cold and Feyre wanted nothing more than to run to her bedroom and lock the door. Tamlin hadn’t taken her refusal well. And when he had thrown his wine glass narrowly missing her face, Feyre had lost her composure. She had told him that she wanted to break up and Tamlin had lost his temper in turn.

She looked at Rhys and was sure that some of her desperation showed in her features, her eyes. His answering stare seemed to tell her, give me one reason to throw his ass out.

"I think you should leave." Feyre said to Tamlin.

Tamlin made no move to honour her wishes. As always. But Rhys, seemingly having had enough, grabbed Tamlin by the shoulder and said, "You’ve heard the lady. Time for you to go." He shoved Tamlin into the hall and Tamlin had to steady himself against the opposite wall to not fall face first into it.

He turned and snarled - actually snarled - at Rhys but another door opened in the hallway and someone poked their head out to see what was going on.

Tamlin begrudgingly accepting defeat, shot a glare at Feyre. "This isn’t over."

She straightened her spine. Returning his glare. "It is. I’m done with you."

Tamlin just shook his head and disappeared into the elevator. Faintly, Feyre heard the shutting of doors down the hall and when long minutes of silence had passed, she looked at Rhys.

—

As soon as the elevator doors had closed, the stiffness in Feyre’s shoulders had disappeared. She seemed to sink into herself and the sight of her reminded Rhys so much of Mor that he wanted nothing but the wrap her into his arms and tell her that everything was going to be okay. Which was ridiculous, he hardly knew her and a near stranger touching her after what just happened would probably be the worst thing.

"Are you okay?" He asked instead and at the same time she said, "Thank you."

He shook his head softly. "There’s no need for thanks."

She just shrugged, looking away from him. "I’m fine, I think. Just surprised."

After a beat of silence he remembered Tamlin’s words and cringed inwardly. "I hope I’m not truly the reason for this.. fight." He said, cringing again at the last word.

Feyre looked up at him in surprise. "Why would you think that?"

Her emphasis on you made him think that she knew why her boyfriend, ex-boyfriend by the sound of it, would think that but not why he would.

He almost regretted bringing it up, but he was in too deep now, might as well clear the air. "The not wanting to have sex thing? You know, because of the thin walls."

She blushed again and Rhys was surprised that she was still embarrassed about that, after everything he had just witnessed.

"Um, no. I mean, kind of. But not really." She stuttered and wrapped an arm around her. "I told him I did not want to have sex tonight and he freaked out." She looked back up at him and her eyes were glazed over with fury. "I don’t want to be with someone that doesn’t respect my choices and this wasn’t the first time. It just made me realise that he didn’t care about me. So me not wanting to have sex while you of all people can hear us wasn’t the reason why I wanted to break up, but just the last straw."

There was a lot to unpack in that statement, but something caught his attention. "Me, of all people?" He asked, his lips quirking up in surprise. "Tell me, Feyre, why does it matter who was on the other side of that wall?"

She blushed again. And Rhys realised that maybe he wasn’t the only one who had a crush on his neighbour. But this was neither the time, nor the place. So he took a step back and rolled his shoulders. "I’m sorry, that’s not the point."

She looked at him and mischief sparked in her eyes. "Cassian told me that you were a shameless flirt, I just did not realise that you would use my breakup to hit on me."

He had no words and he must have looked like it, because Feyre let out a laugh and Rhys couldn’t help but smile at that. "Since when are you talking to Cassian?"

She gave him a mysterious smile. "He slipped his number into my bag the day he carried up my canvas. We started talking.

At his raised eyebrows, she added, "As friends."

Rhys made a face at that. "That bastard didn’t tell me."

Her eyes were twinkling, when she reached up and placed a kiss on his cheek. "Thanks again for checking in." She said and ducked back through the door.

He smiled at her and just said, "If you need anything, you know where to find me."

She chuckled. "Goodnight, Rhys."

"Goodnight, Feyre." He replied as she shut the door quietly.

Rhys went back into his apartment and poured himself a drink before picking up his phone and calling his bastard of a friend. Cassian had some explaining to do.


End file.
